Longshoremen's Guild
The Longshoremen's Guild is largely responsible for supplying Cartham with fish, which is a staple of Carthian diets. The guild has a near-monopoly on the fishing trade. Organization The guild has two classes of members: eldershoremen and longshoremen. The eldershoremen are those who own their own ships, whereas common longshoremen are those who serve on any ship belonging to the guild. At the time of the Great War, the Cartham City contingent of the guild was made up of about two dozen large fishing ships, and twice that number of smaller ones. There are about 48 eldershoremen and it is these men who lead the guild, and it is they (not the common longshoremen) who elect the guildmaster. The Cartham City guild has about 300 members, and these men do not bemoan their secondary status. The captains treat them well and they get good pay, both of which go a long way in smoothing over any disagreements. However, every few years some of the more agitated and charismatic longshoremen attempt to rally their fellows in an attempt to change the guild's centuries-old way of operation. Usually they gain a strong minority following, strong enough to attract the attention of their superiors. In the past the elders have neutralized these challenges in a variety of ways: buying off the rebel leaders by giving them their own ship, giving into their demands or (in extreme cases) arranging for unfortunate accidents to happen at sea. Leadership The guildmaster is Merek Purdy, the captain of the Nautica. ''He is a master seaman and a capable warrior who was elected into his position in 1088 after the former guildmaster retired. Purdy is a patient man who taught many of the guild’s captains how to sail the mighty Carthian Sea. As a result, he has the respect of almost all of the captains, and a good portion of the common folk as well. He is methodical and to some extent plodding – he does not want to rock the boat, and would rather the guild keep doing the things it’s always done. He served in the Royal Navy for several years as the first mate on the flagship ''Persistence. He has one vocal critic in the guild: Klaus Scotch, captain of Scotch’s Dream. Scotch is a young, charismatic firebrand who wants the guild to take on new, riskier ventures, like fishing in deeper waters, hunting more exotic fish, taking more on adventurer charters and challenging other ocean-going guilds in new business ventures. Few of the other stolid captains follow him, but he has a nice-sized following among the common longshoremen. Allies and Enemies The guild has close ties to the Royal Navy, and its not uncommon for some of its captains, and even the common longshoremen, to have served on a navy ship in the past. The guild has no true enemies, although a certain amount of animosity exists between it and the Farmers' Guild and Herders' Guilds. The guilds have gotten into pricing wars in the past, dueling with each other over the cost of staple foods in attempts to sway the tastes of the Carthian consumers. These hostilities occasionally break out into fist fights, but they rarely escalate into all out conflict. Known Members * Merek Purdy, guildmaster and captain of the ''Nautica'' * Klaus Scotch, captain of ''Scotch's Dream'' * Luca Sharpe Category:Guilds